


Buchi-Con

by vivvav



Category: Persona 4, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: F/M, The AFR Universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2018-01-25
Packaged: 2019-03-09 11:40:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13480731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivvav/pseuds/vivvav
Summary: Makoto, Haru, and Futaba attend a Buchimaru fan convention. While there, they meet Makoto's online friend of nearly three years, Kanji Tatsumi. Haru finds herself particularly enjoying the meeting.





	Buchi-Con

Makoto’s alarm was silenced just as quickly as it had gone off. Before the second series of beeps could start, she had grabbed her phone and shut it off. It helped that she hadn’t really been asleep. Oh, she had certainly tried, but the previous night was completely restless. In spite of this, she was full of energy. All of this was for one reason: Today was the start of Buchi-Con.

Since Buchimaru had rebooted a few years ago, it had established a convention presence. Makoto very much wanted to attend panels by the cartoon’s creators live, but even her Buchimania wasn’t strong enough to justify purchasing a ticket for an entire convention to attend a single panel. This was entirely different. This was an entire convention centered around Buchimaru. Not a massive one, but there were supposed to be at least a few thousand people in attendance, and the organizers had even gotten a few people from the show to appear for a Q&A session. The convention was going to last for two days, and with Makoto having just finished college and about to enter police training, this was her first and last chance to indulge in an event like this. So naturally, she bought a ticket for both days.

Of course, because Makoto was so excited she couldn’t sleep a wink. And there were a lot of things to be excited for. There were going to be fan artists selling goods and people in costumes and panels about the history of the Buchimaru franchise and so much more. Really, too much. Some things were going to have to be skipped, and Makoto struggled to put together an optimal schedule for her weekend. She had a few must-do events and activities, but a few activities conflicted, which meant some things would simply have to be missed. The choice was daunting, to say the least. Really, the whole experience was. This was her first ever time going to a convention like this. Thankfully, she wouldn’t be going alone. Futaba and Haru were going to be joining her, so even if an event she picked was a dud, at least she'd have fun just being with her friends. She tried to get Ren to come, but did not succeed. Ren by no means hated Buchimaru, but he never took to it despite Makoto’s repeated attempts to get him into the franchise, and an entire convention dedicated to it was more than he was prepared to handle.

Still, Makoto wasn’t going to let her boyfriend’s absence get her down. Because there was one thing she was really looking forward to, more than anything. In the two and a half years since Buchimaru’s revival, Makoto had made a friend on a Buchimaru fan server. His name was Kanji Tatsumi, although originally Makoto only knew him by his online handle, “TextileZaiten”. Their relationship got off to a rocky start with an argument over the integrity of the police, but the two quickly got past their differences. Kanji was a couple years older than Makoto, but he actually reminded her a lot of Ryuji. He had this kind of rough personality, but the more they talked, the more she realized that he was an admirable person underneath it all. He didn’t seem to have any problem telling the truth as he saw it, and while sometimes he could be a little rude in his bluntness, he was never cruel. Insensitive and unthinking, sure, but while Kanji would often get into arguments with other members of the chat, he wasn’t usually outright mean-spirited about it.

Kanji lived in the small country town of Inaba, which was about a three-hour drive from Tokyo. He didn’t usually have any reason to go to Tokyo, and to justify making the trip he actually bought a table in the artists’ alley from which to sell his hand-crocheted dolls. Kanji had made a small business out of selling custom-made dolls people could commission online. He had a reputation for making really high-quality work at a reasonable price, and had worked for the past month preparing a bunch of dolls based on Buchimaru and his friends. And Makoto had recruited a very special pair of dolls from him, which she was excited to finally get her hands on.

Makoto arrived at the convention center early, and was one of the first people in line for when they would finally open the front doors. Haru and Futaba arrived together a few minutes later. Due to Futaba’s night owl tendencies, the two older girls realized that they’d never get her to the convention in time if she didn’t sleep over at somebody’s home, and Haru was more than happy to accommodate her. At least, she was at the time. Today, Haru tried to seem like her usual self, but she couldn’t help fussing over the tiny redhead she’d come with. Futaba looked like the walking dead, and it wasn’t cosplay.

“Hello, Haru! Hello, Futaba!” Makoto gave her shortest non-cat friend a concerned look. “Did you enjoy your sleepover at Haru’s penthouse?”

“Can’t talk” Futaba said, looking at the ground. “Am ice cream zombie.”

“Pardon?”

“Futaba-Chan was very… excited… to have my servants at her disposal.” Haru patted Futaba on the back. “She got a little carried away last night.”

“You can keep asking them for ice cream, and they’ll just keep bringing it to you.” Futaba looked up at Makoto with the exact same face Sae had whenever she was hung over. “It was like getting a tonsillectomy, but without the surgery. I wanted to see if they would cut me off at some point, but they just kept bringing me bowls.”

“You didn’t stop this?” Makoto asked Haru.

“I wasn’t sure what to do” Haru said. “I thought eventually Futaba-Chan would get full, but she didn’t. She got into a frightful sugar rush and just kept eating and eating until she passed out.”

“I saw the face of God” Futaba whispered. “It was covered in sprinkles.”

“Are you certain you’re in a good enough condition to be here?” Makoto asked.

“This isn’t my first rodeo.” Futaba seemed to get some of her energy back. “You’re the con noob here, sister. Don’t talk to me about ‘condition’ until you’ve spent the day at Comiket and wound up lost and dehydrated by the Tokyo Bay at midnight, looking for the way back to the road.”

“That is an alarmingly specific situation you just described.”

“That’s the con life.” Futaba yawned. “So, have you figured out what you wanna hit first?”

“Well…” Makoto pulled out her phone and opened the schedule she’d made on it. “The doors open at 9:00, and then at 9:15 the screening room is showing the first episode of the original Buchimaru cartoon. That lasts until 9:45, which should give us time to reach the Mascot Costume Cafe at 10:00…”

“Oh, I’m looking forward to that one!” Haru giggled. “I can’t wait to see those adorable mascots serving coffee and snacks! I just hope those big clumsy costume hands don’t cause them to spill scalding hot coffee on anybody’s face, disfiguring them for life!”

“Uh…” Futaba looked at Haru in fear. “That’s kinda omino-“

“Moving on,” Makoto said sternly, “if we spend half an hour in the cafe, that should give us time to get in line for the Buchiworld video game panel Futaba wanted to see.”

“Yes!” Futaba pumped her fist. “I mean, I know it’s pretty much if Animal Crossing were an MMO, but I still wanna see what making it themed around Buchimaru is like.”

“What time are we meeting your friend, Mako-Chan?” Haru looked over Makoto’s shoulder at her calendar. “I'm excited to see the dolls you’ve spoken of so often!”

“I have lunch scheduled with Kanji from 12:00 to 1:00. We can spend the half hour between then and the end of the video game panel perusing artists’ alley and slowly making our way to him.”

“Wow, did you plan out every minute of the weekend?” Futaba walked to Makoto’s side and stood on her tip-toes to look at her screen. “This is a REALLY tight schedule.”

“Not exactly.” Makoto lowered her phone so Futaba could get a better look at it. “I read an article about how to get the most out of your convention experience, and the author said to give yourself some time to roam around and discover something you may not have expected. So I’ve scheduled 45 minutes for spontaneous discovery tomorrow night. It’s right between dinner and getting in line early for the screening of the ‘Phoenix Ranger Buchi-Kun’ movie followed by a question and answer session with the voice cast.”

“Wow, a whole 45 minutes, huh? You’re really living on the edge, Queen.”

“Very funny, Futaba.” Makoto put her phone away. “This is the only opportunity I’ll have to go to a convention like this. After this weekend, it’s all training, uniforms, and rules. I just want to make sure I’m enjoying it to the fullest and won’t have any regrets when it’s over.”

“We understand completely, Mako-Chan.” Haru beamed at the police cadet-to-be. “I’m sure that Futaba-Chan and I will enjoy whatever you’ve planned for us this weekend!”

* * *

“300, and not one yen more!”

“P-please m-miss, I can’t go below 500!”

Futaba was haggling with a boy slightly younger than her over a handmade phone charm of Nekoejima, a black and white cat character from the Buchimaru show. Ordinarily she would have no interest in this charm as it was her least favorite character, but this particular artist’s style made the character look like Morgana’s Metaverse form, so Futaba very much wanted to have it.

“Alright then, 250!”

“WHAT!?” The boy manning the table was flabbergasted. “Th-that’s even lower! I can’t sell these at a third of the original price, I’d be losing money!”

“Come on, have you sold any of these so far!?”

“N-no, but-“

“Then you should be happy you’re getting my business at all, shouldn’t you!?”

“I… That’s not… But-“

“Futaba!” Makoto pulled Futaba aside. “You should be ashamed of yourself, terrorizing him like this!”

“Sssshhhh!” Futaba cupped her hand around her mouth and whispered. “Not now! I’m about to get that Mona charm at a huge discount!”

“I’m sorry for my friend’s behavior.” Makoto placed a 1000-yen note on the table and snatched the charm. “Please, keep the change.”

“Thank you for your patronage…” The boy leaned back in his chair and let out a huge sigh of relief.

Makoto briskly walked away from the table, Futaba and Haru rushing to catch up to her.

“Are you nuts!?” Futaba shouted. “You OVERPAID for a phone charm!?”

“If I kept letting you haggle, we’d be late for meeting Kanji” Makoto said.

“Ok, I guess you’ve got a point.” Futaba held her palm out to Makoto.

“What are you doing?” Makoto asked.

“Hand it over.”

“Hand what over?”

“Uh… the charm?”

“Why would I do that?”

“What do you mean? Didn’t you buy it for me?”

“After the way you almost made that boy cry!? Of course not!” Makoto clenched a fist around the charm. “Why would I reward your bad behavior with a present!?”

“But I wanted it!”

“Then you should have paid for it when you had the chance.”

“Are you even gonna put it on your phone!?”

“Hm…” Makoto dangled the charm in front of her face, analyzing closely. “No, I don’t think so.”

“So what, you bought it just to spite me!?”

“I’ll think of something to do with it.” Makoto held the charm out to Haru. “Haru, would you like it?”

“Oh, no thank you, Mako-Chan! I’m very happy with my current phone charm!” Haru pulled out her phone to show off how she had accessorized it. A little battle axe with flower petals in the place of blades dangled from it.

“Well, it definitely suits you” Futaba said.

“Oh!” Makoto pointed to a booth in the distance. The sign read ‘Tatsumi Textiles’. “Over there!”

Makoto rushed in the direction of the booth, Haru and Futaba running to keep up with her, but she stopped a few feet away from the booth, because there was a customer already present.

Kanji’s booth had a bunch of stuffed animals on display, including a very large, misshapen Buchimaru sitting in a chair next to him that looked to be at least four feet tall. Kanji himself looked just as he did in the pictures he showed Makoto. He was sitting in a chair, so Makoto couldn’t make out his exact height, but she could tell he was tall, and his broad shoulders were apparent for anyone to see. He kept his black hair short and neatly combed, and wore glasses to lessen the impact of his harsh-looking eyes, similar to how Ren used to wear fake glasses back when everyone thought he was a delinquent. He also had a large scar above his left eye. But in spite of how naturally scary he looked, he seemed completely natural dealing with a young girl whose older brother was buying a Buchimaru doll from him.

“Now remember, Buchi-Kun normally loves candy, but if it touches him it’ll mess up his fur. So make sure not to give him any, ok?”

“Ok!” The girl took the doll from Kanji excitedly. “Thanks, mister!”

“Make sure to thank your big bro too” Kanji said. “He's the one who got him for you.”

“‘Kay!” The girl looked up at her brother. “Thanks, big bro!”

“C’mon, let’s get lunch.” The older boy took his sister’s hand and walked away.

Once they were gone, Makoto, Futaba, and Haru approached the booth. Makoto was about to say hello to Kanji, but the misshapen giant Buchimaru suddenly lurched forward, leaning against the table.

“Well, hello there!” Upon closer inspection, the malformed Buchi wasn’t a doll, but a costume. The cosplayer inside spoke with an exuberant, high-pitched voice. “Can we interest you three cuties in a homemade doll? Or would you like to take ME home instead!?”

“Damn it Ted, I told you to stop hittin’ on the customers” Kanji growled at his costumed companion. “I gotta cover the costs of this table, and that’s never gonna happen if you keep drivin’ off every girl who-“ Kanji looked at the three girls and froze up for a second. It seemed like the wheels in his head were spinning, then his eyes widened and he got a huge grin on his face. “Yo! Makoto! You made it!”

“Of course, Kanji.” Makoto gave a big smile to her online friend. “You didn’t think I was going to stand you up after you came all the way here from Inaba, did you?”

“Of course not!” Kanji stood up and walked out from behind his table. His picture did not prepare Makoto for just how imposing his presence was. Makoto had gone through quite a growth spurt lately, having recently surpassed Ren in height, but Kanji positively towered over her. “It’s great to finally meet you!”

“He’s big” Futaba whispered to Haru.

“He certainly is…” Haru looked up at Kanji in awe. There was a note of intrigue to her voice.

“Kanji, what’s going on?” The Buchi costume walked out from behind the table. “Do you know this girl?”

“C’mon, Ted, don’t you remember?” Kanji pointed at Makoto. “This is the friend I was telling you about!”

“Oh! So this is the famous Makoto!” Buchi approached Makoto and gasped, looking back at Kanji. “Wait a second! Isn’t this Mako-Chan the one with the B-O-Y-F-R-I-E-N-D?”

“It’s not like that, man!” A vein in Kanji’s forehead throbbed. Clearly, whoever was in the costume knew how to push his buttons. “We’re just pals!”

“Speaking of which,” Makoto said, “I’d like you to meet my friends. This is Futaba.”

“H-hi.” Futaba fought the urge to hide behind Makoto’s back. She’d gotten a lot better about talking to strangers over the past four years, but these guys were kind of weird.

“Hello, Fuchan!” Buchi walked over to Futaba, making a strange kind of squeaking sound with every footstep. “Say, do YOU have a boyfriend?”

“Huh?” Futaba looked the costume up and down. Aside from being an off-brand Buchimaru, there was something odd about it. Some familiar design element she couldn’t quite place. “What ARE you?”

“Moi? Why, I’m Teddiemaru, of course!”

“‘Teddiemaru’?” A lightbulb went off in Futaba’s head. “Oh, I get it! You're a fusion of Buchimaru and the Junes mascot Teddie!”

“See!?” Teddie turned to Kanji and puffed up his chest. “I told you people would get it! I’m the star of this whole convention!”

“She’s the first person to get it all day” Kanji said in an exasperated tone.

“Hello there, Kanji-Kun.” Haru approached Kanji and bowed. “My name is Haru Okumura. Mako-Chan speaks of you often, so it’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance.”

“Uh… hi.” Kanji stared at Haru for a moment, then bowed stiffly. When he rose, he was still staring. “Good to meet ya.”

“Is something wrong, Kanji-Kun?”

“Oh, uh…” Kanji shook his head and loosened up a bit. “No, sorry. I was just lookin’ at your hair.”

“You were?” Haru ran a hand through her hair. “Is something wrong with it?”

“Not at all. It’s just so fluffy…” Kanji slowly raised his hand, almost as if he was about to reach out and touch Haru’s head, but then came to his senses and lowered it. “How long does it take you to get it like that?”

“Well, I brush it, of course, but the volume is all-natural.”

“Wow…” Kanji’s focus on Haru’s hair intensified, like he was analyzing a work of art. “It looks so soft. If you weren’t usin’ it, I’d want to try makin’ a stuffed animal out of it.”

“Well, I can certainly think of worse uses for human hair!”

“This is your friend?” Futaba whispered to Makoto. “He seems kinda creepy.”

“He’s just passionate about his craft” Makoto whispered back. “I promise that he’s harmless.”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Kanji went back behind the table and pulled up a box. “I've got your commission, Makoto!”

“Oh yes!” Makoto leaned on the table excitedly, hovering over the box. “I almost forgot! I’ve been looking forward to seeing them for a month!”

“Well, wait no longer! We got one Road Warrior Dobrina…” Kanji reached into the box and pulled out a doll of Makoto’s favorite side character from the Buchimaru cartoon, the Police Chief Dobrina, a no-nonsense female doberman. But instead of her usual blue police uniform, she was wearing Makoto’s old Queen outfit. “And one Phantom Thief Buchi-Kun!” Kanji reached into the box again and took out a crocheted Buchimaru doll, this one dressed like Joker. “I gotta say, I was surprised by these. Phantom Thief dolls were really big like three years ago, but it’s been a long time since anyone’s commissioned one.”

“Well, my friends and I were very big fans.” Makoto took one doll in each hand giddily.

“The Phantom Thieves changed our lives” Haru said.

“Yeah?” Kanji looked at Haru with interest. “Did they change the heart of someone who was buggin’ ya?”

“You have no idea” Futaba said. “In fact, you could say we were closer to the Phantom Thieves than anyone el-“

“Yes, well, there’s no need to dwell on the past.” Makoto shot a quick Niijima glare at Futaba, then returned her attention to Kanji with a calm expression. “Shall we get lunch?”

“Totally! I’m starvin’.” Kanji walked out from behind the table again. “Watch the shop, Ted!”

“WHAAAAT!?” Teddie stomped his foot. “You mean you get to go off to lunch with three adorable honeys and are leaving me at this table all by my lonesome!?”

“I only brought you along because you promised to man the table so I could take a break! I even made you that costume you wanted! Now it’s time for you to hold up your end of the deal!”

“Fine!” Teddie huffed. “Never let it be said that Teddie is one to BEAR-eak his promises! But you better bring me back something yummy!” Teddie winked at Futaba. “Or someone. Rrrowr!”

“Wow, he’s really committed to his character” Futaba said. “He acts just like the Teddie from the commercials.”

“Yeah.” Kanji sighed. “He’s a real pain in the ass.”

* * *

One of the establishments in the convention center’s food court was a Big Bang Burger. Kanji had never actually eaten at one since they didn’t have an Inaba location, so Haru managed to get the group a free lunch.

“You OWN Big Bang Burger!?” Kanji looked at Haru starstruck they sat down at a table.

“In a sense.” Haru sat down at the table across from Kanji. “My family founded Okumura Foods, Big Bang Burger’s parent company. I’m the majority shareholder of Okumura Foods, so I have say over all of the company’s operations.”

“So, are you in business meetings and stuff all the time?”

“Oh, goodness no! I leave the company’s operations to the board. I keep abreast of what they’re doing and weigh in with my opinion then and again, but I have no desire to oversee Okumura Foods full time.” Haru started rummaging through her bag. “I’ve been spending my time preparing to open a cafe, and- Aha!” Haru pulled a thermos and some small plastic cups out of her bag. “Found it!”

“What’s that?”

“Homemade coffee! I ground the beans myself!” Haru poured a cup and handed it to Kanji. “Try it, Kanji-Kun!”

“Alright.” Kanji took a sip and immediately let out an undignified “MMMMM!” He took another sip, savoring the flavor of the coffee, and put his cup down. “This is great! It’s nothin’ like the instant stuff my mom buys!”

“I’m glad you enjoy it.”

“I’ve never had coffee like this before.” Kanji took another sip. “It’s got a real unique flavor. There’s kind of a tang to it, but also… it’s a little chocolatey? Or like, fruity or something. Does that make sense?”

“Very good, Kanji-Kun!” Haru was impressed. Kanji had described the characteristics of the Guatemalan SHB she had brewed that morning with the kind of detail most people didn’t seem to notice. “You must have quite the refined palette!”

“I dunno about that. I’m not one of those, whaddya call ‘em, ‘gower-mets’?”

“You mean ‘gourmet’?” Makoto asked.

“Is that how it’s pronounced? I’ve only ever seen it written in romaji.” Kanji shrugged and picked up his burger. “I just like, y’know, flavors.”

“Do you do any cooking yourself?”

“A little, but it ain’t like I’m a master chef.” Kanji bit into his burger, talking with his mouth full. “Id’d be cool if I wash, but dere’sh nefer enough dime do learn wiff all my shewing.”

“Yeah, I can’t imagine you have a lot of free time.” Futaba was holding the Buchi-Joker doll, looking at it closely. “You really made this thing by hand? You didn’t use some kind of machine?”

“Dat’sh ride!” Kanji swallowed the bite in his mouth. “That’s all 100% Tatsumi craftsmanship, nothin’ but needles, thread, and my own two hands!”

“This is amazing!” Futaba ran her fingers over the doll’s trench coat. It was really soft, but felt sturdy. “I’ve never seen anything so high-quality! Can I commission one too!?”

“Whaddya got in mind?”

“I want a Phantom Thief too!” Futaba pulled out her phone and and opened a folder of fan-art people had created of “Bugeye”, the name the Phandom came up with for Oracle after that broadcast (apparently they were under the impression that Futaba was an alien). “Think you could make this?”

“Yeah, I’ve made some sci-fi stuff like this before.” Kanji took Futaba’s phone and scrolled through the pictures. “You want a li’l alien?”

“Nah, not an alien. I was thinking something cuter. Like a bunny.”

“Sci-fi bunny, huh?” Kanji pulled out a clipboard and pencil from his backpack and started writing down the order. “I like it. What color do you want it to be? Ears standing or floppy?”

“Orange. And… floppy, I guess.”

“Alright. I have a few other commissions ahead of that, but I can get started on it in a couple weeks.” Kanji handed Futaba the clipboard and pencil. “Just write down your e-mail address. I’ll send you pricing information about the different sizes of dolls I make and we can figure out the rest from there.”

“I’d like to commission one as well!” Haru turned to Futaba, trying to remember the Phandom’s nickname for Noir. “Futaba-Chan, do you have any pictures of… Ah, yes! Musketeer?”

“Yeah.” Futaba opened a different folder and showed it to Kanji.

“Oh, I really like this one!” Kanji grinned at the fan-art. “I almost never get to make hats!”

“I look forward to seeing it!” Haru took the clipboard and started writing down the information for her commission. “Can you make a sheep?”

“Yeah, no problem! I can make any kind of animal you want!” Kanji winced. “Except aye-ayes. Those things creep me out.”

“Well now I kinda want an aye-aye” Futaba said.

“Y’know I haven’t actually accepted your commission yet, right?”

“Hey, no fair!” Futaba huffed. “You shouldn’t pick on someone so much smaller than you!”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Makoto pulled out her phone. “Kanji, would you mind standing up? My boyfriend wanted me to take a picture of you to see if you’re really as tall as he’s heard.”

“Ok." Kanji got up and moved a few feet away from the table. “This good?”

“Yes, but it needs something else.” Makoto snickered and looked at Futaba. “Futaba, stand next to him!”

“Why?”

“Ren will find the difference in height humorous.”

“I don’t wanna.”

“I’ll give you this if you do.” Makoto pulled the Morgana-esque phone charm out of her purse.

“Deal!” Futaba jumped out of her chair and scurried over to Kanji. “Make it quick!”

“Alright.” Makoto pointed her phone at the pair. The top of Futaba’s head barely came up to just below Kanji’s chest. Makoto had to get up and take a few steps back to fit both of them in the frame. When she finished taking the photo, she looked at it and giggled. “Futaba, this makes you look even shorter than usual!”

“Hey, it’s not my fault your friend’s a freak of nature!” Futaba marched over to the table and held out her hand. “I did my part! Now hand over the goods!”

“A deal’s a deal.” Makoto gave Futaba the charm and looked at her phone again, a goofy smile forming on her face.

“What’s so funny?” Futaba asked. “You’ve been looking at us for a while now. You already know how we look next to each other.”

“Yes, but there’s just something about the photo that makes it funnier.” Makoto turned her phone’s screen towards Kanji and Futaba. The picture was pretty unremarkable. It was just a very tall guy and a very short girl standing next to each other.

“I don’t get it” Futaba said.

“Me neither” Kanji said. “But send it to me anyway. This is probably the kind of thing Yukiko would get a kick out of.”

“Who’s Yukiko, Kanji-Kun?” Haru asked. “Is she your girlfriend?”

“Huh!? No way!” Kanji shook his head ferociously. “Yukiko’s a friend of mine. She was my senpai in high school.”

“And she finds things like this funny?” Futaba gave the photo and unimpressed glance.

“She’s always had a really weird sense of humor. She’s the kinda person who you can never tell when something’s gonna set her off.” Kanji shrugged. “I dunno, maybe growin’ up surrounded by steam did somethin’ to her head.”

“Where would somebody grow up that they’re surrounded by steam?” Makoto asked.

“Yukiko owns an inn. It’s this traditional place with an open-air bath.”

“Do you mean the Amagi Inn?”

“You know about it?”

“Yes, I read about it in a travel magazine a couple months ago.” Makoto put her hand to her chin. “If I recall correctly, it’s one of the oldest and most highly-rated traditional Japanese inns in the country.”

“That sounds delightful!” Haru pulled out her phone and looked up pictures of the inn. “Oh, this establishment looks lovely! Perhaps if I ever take a trip to Inaba, I'll stay there!”

“No kidding” Kanji said. “The Amagi Inn is pretty much the ONLY reason to take a trip to Inaba.”

“Oh, I’m sure that’s not true!”

“No, it is. I like livin’ there, but there’s nothing to do. We have one bar, a Junes department store, and aside from that it’s all a bunch of mom and pop shops.”

“What kind of shops?”

“You really wanna know?”

Haru nodded.

“Well…” Kanji stared at the ceiling. “There’s my family’s textile shop, of course. Then there’s the tofu place, the steak skewers, the blacksmith-“

“A blacksmith!?” Haru’s eyes lit up. “Your town has a real blacksmith!?”

“Yeah, Master Daidara. He makes, y’know, swords and armor and stuff.”

“And they’re real!? Not replicas!?”

“Uh… yeah.” Kanji gave Haru a disturbed look. “Why? You don’t need to kill someone, do ya?”

“Oh, heavens no! I’m just a collector!”

“Huh.” Kanji resumed eating his burger. “Cool.”

* * *

Lunch proceeded without incident until Kanji saw a woman walk by with a whole box of his handmade dolls. Kanji discovered that Teddie was giving them away for free to any woman whose attention he could grab. The woman sympathized with Kanji’s plight and let him have the dolls back, and he immediately ran to his table.

Makoto, Haru, and Futaba enjoyed the rest of the convention. Makoto participated in a trivia contest and won a poster signed by Buchimaru’s voice actor. Haru particularly enjoyed the costume contest, seeing all the different creative ways people came up with to resemble the characters. Futaba mostly spent time trying to haggle down prices from vendors, though most of them weren’t as easily intimidated as that first boy, so her victories were few and far between.

When the show floor closed on the second day, Kanji wound up joining the group. Apparently Teddie had gone home early after harassing a female artist and getting ink all over his costume, so Kanji was free to enjoy the rest of the convention as he pleased. The four of them went to the screening for the Featherman/Buchimaru crossover movie, which Futaba seemed to enjoy the most. At the end of the film, the panel’s moderator introduced some of the voice cast from the movie, and Futaba started screaming louder than any of them thought was possible when Yukari Takeba came onstage. She rushed into line to ask a question, but since she was in the back of the room, didn’t get in line fast enough, and never got her turn at the microphone.

Finally, the convention came to an end. As thousands of people left the convention center and made their way to various destinations all over town, the group waited as Makoto bid farewell to Kanji.

“It was a pleasure to finally meet you, Kanji.” Makoto shook the taller man’s hand. “Let's hope it doesn’t take another three years to see each other again.”

“I hear that!” Kanji broke the handshake. “And next time, bring your boyfriend along. The way you’ve described him reminds me of a buddy of mine. I think we’d get along.”

“Absolutely.”

“Well, nice meeting you.” Futaba yawned. “I’d stick around to chat, but I gotta go home and drink a lot of coffee. All this con stuff has me going to sleep before midnight and waking up at sunrise. It’s really thrown off my sleep schedule.”

“Uh… Ok.” Kanji waved at Futaba as she walked away. He was about to say goodbye to Haru and head to his hotel, but then his stomach grumbled very audibly.

“Are you ok, Kanji-Kun?” Haru stared at his stomach. “I’ve never heard a person’s stomach growl so loudly before.”

“Yeah, I haven’t eaten since this morning.” Kanji hunched over, a grumpy look on his face. “When Ted went home early, he took the lunch I’d made for today with him, and I ran outta cash buying breakfast.”

“You don’t have any money!?” Makoto frowned. “Are you going to be ok!?”

“Yeah, I got my train ticket and my hotel’s all paid up for and everything, so it ain’t like I’m stranded or nothin’.” Kanji stood up straight and thumped his chest. “I just gotta put up with being hungry ’til I get home tomorrow night, but I can take it. I’m a man!”

“Man or not, it’s not good for your health to go without food that long, Kanji-Kun” Haru said. “Let me buy you dinner.”

“That’s real nice, but you don’t gotta-“

“I won’t hear any protests!” Haru crossed her arms and turned her nose up. “I’m treating you to sushi, and that’s final!”

“Sushi!?” Kanji took a step back. “Are you sure? I heard sushi in the city can get pretty expensive.”

“Money is no object.” Haru lowered her chin and smiled sweetly. “I know a wonderful conveyer sushi restaurant that stays open late not too far from here. I insist that you eat to your heart’s content!”

“Well, I mean, if you insist, I guess I gotta.” Kanji smiled nervously. From anybody else, that line would’ve sounded playful and sarcastic, but he genuinely seemed to mean it, clearly not used to accepting charity.

“Oh, wonderful!” Haru clasped her hands and turned to Makoto. “Would you like to join us, Mako-Chan?”

“You know, I think I will…“

Makoto felt a strange aura. She looked at Haru. Despite her usual sweet smile, there was a notably unfriendly look in her eyes. The kind of look that made it seem as if Haru had “KEEP AWAY” written on her forehead in big bold letters. Makoto normally didn’t scare easily, being the person who tended to scare others. But just this once, she understood what it was like to be on the other side of the equation. And it’s not like she hadn’t noticed the way Haru had been looking at Kanji whenever they’d been together for the past couple days. Makoto decided to take the hint.

“…have to decline.” Makoto let her shoulders sag and her eyes glaze over a bit, faking tiredness. “I have my first day at the police academy tomorrow, so I need to be well rested.”

“Right on!” Kanji gave Makoto a big thumbs up. “Get a good night’s sleep! Tomorrow, you start kickin’ ass!”

“Yes, good luck, Mako-Chan!” Haru waved as Makoto departed, giving her a very enthusiastic and grateful smile. Once Makoto was out of earshot, Haru grabbed Kanji’s arm. “Come, Kanji-Kun! Dinner awaits!”

“Uh…” Kanji started to blush heavily. “Alright.”

The sushi restaurant was a ten-minute walk from the convention center, during which Kanji didn’t say a word. Haru was also quiet for the entire walk, trying to hide her giddiness. The two eased up a bit once they reached the restaurant. At first, Kanji was very timid as they sat down, slowly grabbing only the most inexpensive plates from the conveyor belt, but after Haru insisted it was alright for him to eat whatever he wanted for the dozenth time, he finally let loose, grabbing whatever caught his eye and devouring it voraciously, a steadily-growing stack of plates piling up on his side of the table.

After a few minutes, Kanji slowed down. He was still eating a lot, but he was no longer shoveling the food past his tongue and down his throat like a man possessed. Haru finally worked up the nerve to try holding an actual conversation with him.

“So, Kanji-Kun, could I ask you a question?”

“Hm?” Kanji was currently shoving a tiger roll into his mouth. “What’sh ub?”

“If you don’t mind my saying so, you don’t fully seem like the kind of person who makes handmade dolls.”

“I ged dad a lod.” Kanji paused to actually swallow his food. “Is there somethin’ wrong with that?”

“Oh, no, not at all!” Haru waved her hands in front of her frantically. “I certainly didn’t mean it as a criticism! I was just wondering how you came to have such a passion for sewing!”

“Oh, well, there ain’t much to it.” Kanji started fiddling with his chopsticks, using them to act out the motions of knitting needles. “My family owns a textile shop. Mom and Dad were always sewing and dyeing and stuff, and I got my interest in all of it from them. I liked working with my hands and making stuff, and I was pretty good at it too.” Kanji put down the chopsticks. “Dad’s gone now, and if Mom was ever young, she really isn’t now, so I’ve been helpin’ out more and more for the past few years.”

“So you’re taking over the family business? That’s wonderful, Kanji-Kun!”

“Yeah, but I almost didn’t.”

“Why not?”

“I hid my work for a long time.” Kanji sighed. “When I was a kid, everyone told me that knitting and stuff was girly, and it was creepy for a man to be into that kinda thing. I shoulda known it was bull since my old man did it and nobody ever seemed to look down on him, but I let it get to me. I started lashin’ out and gettin’ into fights and dyeing my hair like a delinquent to prove what a man I was. And it’s not like it made people say good stuff about me, but at least it made me feel like I was in control.”

“It sounds like you weren’t, though.”

“You’re right.” Kanji chuckled, then groaned. “All that runnin’ around, thrashing biker gangs and yelling at everyone to ‘get bent’ and stuff. I’m not gonna say something like ‘that wasn’t me’, because it was. I get angry easily and I don’t always think things through, and while it’s not like I go looking for fights or anything, I do kinda like fighting. Sometimes talking to people can be confusing and frustrating. Fighting makes sense. You just keep hittin’ the other guy ’til he stops moving.”

“I see…” Haru didn’t say so, but she related very heavily to Kanji’s statement. Preparing to open her cafe was certainly enjoyable. After all, it was her life’s passion. But as much as Haru enjoyed the smell of coffee and the thought of all those people she could make happy, she couldn’t deny that it lacked a certain je ne sais quoi. Haru’s time as a Phantom Thief had given her a thirst for adrenaline-pumping excitement which had never really gone away, and sometimes she even entertained the idea of looking into one of those underground fighting rings Iwai had mentioned to her in the past. Really, the only reason she hadn’t gone for it is because with her wealth and status, there’s no way it wouldn’t go unnoticed, and if Haru wound up arrested and/or scandalized because of it, it would ruin her cafe dreams forever.

“But yeah,” Kanji continued, “I was ashamed of this whole side of myself. So all that acting up and lashing out about what a man I am was still just a way I was letting other peoples’ opinions control me. Thankfully, my senpai came along and helped me pull my head out of my ass.”

“Was that that Yukiko girl you mentioned?”

“Nah, this was a different senpai. His name’s Yu. He’s the greatest guy I've ever known.” Kanji smiled, and his eyes grew wistful. “He helped me realize that I didn’t have to hide a part of myself, because I had nothin’ to be ashamed of. If other people didn’t understand me, I wasn’t gonna make ‘em understand by denying who I am. I’m Kanji Tatsumi. I’m a man. And that doesn’t have to mean I like or say or do anything manly. It means that I know who I am and I can be that person without shame. I’m big and tough and good in a scrap, but I also like cute things and I’m good at sewing. And there’s nothing weird about it.”

“That’s incredible, Kanji-Kun!” Haru stared at Kanji in awe as he downed his tea. "This Yu person must be somebody truly remarkable to have helped you work through all of that!”

“Yeah, he is.” Kanji put down his empty teacup. “Guess that’s why he got the girl I liked.”

“Oh no!”

“Yeah, it bummed me out at first, but I’m over it.” Kanji shook his head. “It’s not like I didn’t have plenty of chances to tell her how I felt. I just never took ‘em, and he did. Plus she was really smart anyway, so I think she prob’ly knew and was too nice to say anything about it.” Kanji stretched out his arms and started scratching his back. “Besides, we’re all still friends. And they’re really happy together, so I’m happy for them.”

“Well, that’s good.” Haru demurely sipped at her own tea. “And besides, I’m certain that a man like you has your pick of the girls in your town.”

“Uh… not really.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, most people in Inaba all still think of me as that loudmouth punk. Even now that we’re all grown up, all the women my age still act like I should either choose between being some kinda manly man or some sissy effeminate seamster.”

“Well I think that’s ridiculous.” Haru started speaking in a breathier voice. “I think a big strong man who’s also in touch with his sensitive side is VERY attractive.”

“Y-you do?”

“Yes. In fact, I’ve been wondering…” Haru leaned forward, walking her hand across the table with her fingers. When it reached the other side, she rested it on top of Kanji’s hand. “What time is your train home tomorrow?”

“Uh…” Kanji’s face started turning red again. He tugged at his collar. “Like, two in the afternoon?”

“So that means you don’t have to be up early?”

“I guess not?” Kanji was starting to sweat.

“Which means it’s fine if you stay up late?”

“I… Uh…”

Haru stood up and leaned over the table, her face inches away from Kanji. Her eyes were locked on his, and from the way she was looking at him, there was no ambiguity as to what her intentions were.

Haru quickly paid the check and went back with Kanji to his hotel room. When he checked out the next morning, she was there with him.

**Author's Note:**

> God I started this one FOREVER ago. I just really had no idea where I wanted to take it. I knew I wanted it to end with a heavy Haru/Kanji ship, but just didn't know how to get there. Then yesterday I finally got some momentum going. Before I knew it 500 words were 1700 words. And then 1700 words were 7000 words.
> 
> Feels so good to just post any one-shot, but especially this one in particular. I am very much enjoying the multi-chapter stories surrounding the Shadow Operatives because it's a breath of fresh air, but as far as fic-writing goes, stuff like this is still why I do it in the first place.
> 
> Special thanks to Hureno who accidentally gave me the idea to have Teddie helping Kanji at his table. Originally I was gonna have a teenage Nanako tag along, but this proved much more entertaining.
> 
> Also, Futaba's thing about dehydration and being lost at midnight? That's autobiographical.


End file.
